Ventilated metal awning



July 23, 1963 R. K. DEAN ETAL 3,093,267

VENTILATED METAL AWNING Original Filed Oct. 3, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 /Za io 3 o o I o 'o 0 o o 2 30 I66 INVENTORSQ epz x/ e. 054W 541/4$4470V5./ BY #501744: usa/ve'e July 23, 1963 R. K. DEAN ETAL 3,098,267

VENTILATEDMETAL AWNING Original Filed 001;. 5, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2United States Patent 3,098,267 VENTILATED METAL AWNING Ralph K. Dean,Emil J. Siatiiovslri, and Herman E.

"vVegner, Riverside, Califi, assignors to Nationai Distillers andChemical Qorporation, a corporation of Virginia Original applicationOct. 3, 1955, Ser. No. 537,942, new Patent No. 3,015,135, dated Jan. 2,1962. Divided and this application Jan. 25, 196i der. No. 16,013

1 Claim. (Ci. 20-57.5)

This invention relates to metal awnings and similar overhead shelterstructures, such as canopies, umbrellas, and the like, and is a divisionof our pending application, Serial No. 537,942, filed October 3, 1955,now Patent No. 3,015,135, issued January 2, 1962. The primary object ofthe invention is to provide a new and improved rigid, ventilated awningor the like embodying roll-formed sheet metal components which can beassembled quickly and easily, with a minimum of tools.

Another object is to provide an awning panel of simple cross sectionalshape which can be roll formed from prepainted coiled strip in theawning manufacturers plant, using relatively inexpensive machinery. Thismakes possible considerable savings in freight charges for shippingmaterial from the strip factory to the awning manufacturers plant, owingto the fact that coiled strip is a compact, high density commoditytaking the lowest freight rate, whereas formed panels are a bulky, lightweight commodity taking a much higher freight rate based more on volumethan on weight.

A further object of the invention is to provide an awning of extremelysimplified assembly, wherein most of the elements slide together or snapinto place without requiring screws or other fasteners, yet which holdtogether with a positive grip that resists the racking and twistingforces exerted by winds of near-hurricane velocity. One importantadvantage of this feature is that most sizes of awnings can be put up byone man alone, which means lower labor cost for installation. Thepresent invention minimizes the cost of assembly, which is normally theprincipal cost of an awning.

Still another object of the invention is to provide an awning that isparticularly adapted to being shipped in knocked down condition andassembled on the job by unskilled labor.

A further object of the invention is to provide a new and improvedmethod of mounting awnings on a wall or other supporting structure,which is simple, quick to install, and extremely strong.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the present inventionwill become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration ofthe following detailed description of the preferred embodiment thereof,reference being had to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a horizontal slat awning embodying theprinciples of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a side elevation of the same;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged sectional View, taken at 3-3 in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view, taken at 4-4 inFIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional View taken at 55 in FIGURE3;

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view, taken at 66 inFIGURE 3;

FIGURE 7 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view, taken at thejunction of the horizontal brace with the slatsupporting stringer; and

FIGURE 8 is a perspective view, showing how two lengths of panel or slatmay be snapped together to form a continuous panel of any desiredlength.

In the drawings, the awning is designated in its entirety 3,098,267Patented July 23, 1963 by the reference numeral 10, and is seen tocomprise a downwardly and outwardly inclined top made up of panels 12mounted on two laterally spaced, inclined stringers 14. The stringers 14are preferably made up of sheet metal, formed into deep U-shapedchannels, the sides of which diverge slightly as shown in FIGURE 4.

Each of the panels 12 is formed from a flat sheet metal strip, with thelongitudinal edges thereof curled roundly at 16 toward the same side ofthe panel through an angle of between and 180; the preferred angle beingap proximately as shown in the drawings. With the edges thus curled upfrom the midsection, the panel 12 has the cross section of a shallow,fiat-bottomed channel. The preferred method of carrying out theinvention calls for shipping the fiat, prepainted strip in coils fromthe strip manufacturer to the awning manufacturer who, in turn, runs thestrip through a roll-forming machine that curls the edges at 16 and cutsthe panels to length. In this manner, considerable economy is effectedin shipping the panel material to the awning manufacturer, since thecoils of flat strip are extremely compact for the weight, and thereforeenjoy a favorable freight rate as compared to formed panels, which areextremely bulky to ship. Also, the formed panels are more subject todamage in shipment, which is reflected in still higher freight rates.

The longitudinal edges of the stringers are cut out to form a pluralityof equally spaced, parallel seats 18 for the downwardly opening panels.Each of the seats 18 is inclined to the longitudinal axis of thestringer at an angle such that the top surface of the panel 12 isinclined downwardly at approximately 20 from the horizontal, so as toshed rain and exclude the slanting rays of the sun when the latter islow in the sky. Also, the lower end of each seat overhangs the upper endof the seat below, so that there is a certain amount of overlap of thepanels. Each seat has a straight edge portion 20 that lies flat againstthe bottom of the panel, and rounded end portions 22 and 24 that extendinto and engage the curled edges 16 of the panel. The seat 18 isundercut deeply at its lower edge, as shown at 26, to permit the curledrear edge of the next lower panel to be inserted behind and hooked underthe rear end 24 of its seat.

The two stringers 14- are attached at their upper ends to the wall orwindow frame, by means of U-sl1aped brackets 26, that are connected tothe sides of the stringer by sheet metal screws 27, which are screwedinto knockouts 28 provided in the stringer. The lower ends of thestringers are held out from the wall by means of horizontal braces 30.The braces 30 are U shaped channels, which open inwardly, and the outerend of the channel receives the bottom end of the stringer 14 .and isattached thereto by sheet metal screws 32 that are also screwed into theknockouts 28. A U-shaped bracket 34 is secured by sheet metal screws 3'6to the other end of the brace, and this bracket is mounted on the wallor window frame to support the awning.

The horizontal panel awning 10 may be made up without side sections, inwhich case, the construction as described to this point is complete. Ifside sections, or returns, are desired, they may be added to the awningby attaching a downwardly opening, U-shaped channel member 38 to theunderneath side of the stringer 14, usingsheet metal screws 4i).Vertical panels 12a are then inserted into the channels 36 and 33, saidpanels facing alternately inwardly and outwardly, as best seen in FIGURE5. The bottom ends of the panels 12a are cut off square to fit withinthe horizontal brace channel 30, while the top ends thereof .are cut tothe same angle as the upper channel 38. The panels 12a overlap oneanother, and can be telescoped together or extended, as necessary, tofill the triangular area enclosed by the members 30, 38 and the verticalwall or window frame.

If it is desired to make an awning of such dimension that the individualpanels would be too long for convenient handling, two or more panels ofshorter length may be joined together. as shown in FIGURE 8, to make anextended panel of any length. In this case, one of the panels 12b issnapped over the end of another panel 12c. The curvature of the edgerolls 16 allows them to fit snugly over one another, to make a tightjunction.

The many advantageous features of the present invention are believed tobe clearly apparent from the foregoing description. While we have shownand described in considerable detail what we believe to be the preferredform of the invention, it will be understood that various changes in theshape and arrangement of the several parts may be made within the scopeof the following claim.

We claim:

A horizontal panel awning comprising at least two laterally spaced,downwardly inclined stringers attached at their upper ends to a support,each of said stringers being in the form of a generally U-shaped channelof sheet metal having upwardly projecting side walls, the upper edges ofsaid side walls being cut out to provide a plurality of uniformlyspaced, parallel panel seats along the length thereof, each of saidpanel seats comprising a downwardly and outwardly inclined straightportion terminating at opposite ends in downwardly curved, arcuate endportions, the outer end portion of one panel seat overhanging the nextlower panel seat and being undercut with a hook-shaped cut-out extendingfrom the bottom of the downwardly curved outer portion of the upperpanel seat to the bottom of the downwardly curved inner end portion ofthe lower panel seat, a plurality of elongated horizontal panels ofsheet metal mounted on said panel seats, each of said panels having aflat bottom portion which bears against said straight portion of saidpanel seat, and downwardly curled side edges which engage said arcuateend portions of said panel seats, said side edges of said panels beingsprung over said arcuate end portions of said panel seats and grippingthe same with spring tension, said hook-shaped cut-out providingclearance to permit the curled rear edge of the associated panel to beinserted behind and hooked down over the downwardly curved inner endportion of the panel seat, and bracing means holding the outer ends ofsaid stringers.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,647,291 Russell et al Aug. 4, 1953 2,657,437 Moser Nov. 3, 19532,814,079 Van Fleet et a1 Nov. 26, 1957 2,867,273 Brennan et a1. Jan. 6,1959

